'Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.' New England Primer, 1737.
According to the pollsters, a belief in Heaven is actually on the increase. Although the thought of Heaven may be popular, probably less thought is given as to how to get there than your annual holiday. It is only when events rudely awaken us that we are pressed into asking some of the serious questions about the place where most people expect to go. Sometimes the prompt is our children with a plaintive "Where is Grandma now?" Mostly, though, thoughts of heaven, and more particularly the death that precedes going there, are pushed out by the hedonistic lifestyle that most of us live. If the purpose of life is simply to enjoy it: then an absence of life (i.e. death) is a recipe for no fun at all! But still we believe in Heaven.
In this contemporary classic Scott and Sinclair discuss why no one really dies of 'natural causes', give true/false answers to the reasons people think will get them to heaven, explain what the Bible has to say about the future, what Heaven is like and how to be ready for death.
Facing death enables us to face life - knowing more about your future makes an enormous difference to the present. It's time you looked your future square in the face and thought 'What does it hold for me?'
Endorsements
Here is a short and simple book about death and the afterlife. Despite it being a short book, the authors manage to pack it full of valuable Christian teaching. They begin by discussing death and explaining from the scriptures how it entered into this world. There then follows chapters on the life that is to come and, very importantly, how a person can be ready for that life. The book could be helpful for a non-christian, who is seeking and asking questions. Also, Christians will benefit from reading it, in that it will bring comfort and reassurance, as well as clear up some misunderstandings on subjects, such as 'the intermediate state' and the 'new heavens and the new earth.' Finally, and very importantly, there is an appendix dealing with the erroneous teaching, taught even in evangelical circles, known as annihilationism. This is the view that those who are not saved at death will simply cease to exist, rather than face eternal, conscious torment. This topic is studied and dealt with biblically. This may be a short book, but it is a very valuable resource to have in these days.
Andrew Young, Fraserburgh
If I Should Die Before I Wake is lucid, biblical and simply written. It is meant to raise questions: What happens when you die? It is meant to answer questions: that children ask parents, that non-Christians ask Christians, that Christians ask their own souls. It is worth reading carefully, taking to heart, and teaching to others.
David Powlison (1949–2019) CCEF Executive Director, Senior Editor, Journal of Biblical Counseling
K. Scott Oliphint is Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He has degrees from West Texas State University and Westminster Theological Seminary.
Dr. Sinclair B. Ferguson is a Ligonier Ministries teaching fellow and Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary. He previously served as senior minister of the First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina.
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